In this article I want to focus on the dynamic interplay
of the Aries-Libra axis. Aries epitomizes the archetype of
heroic courage that comes from heart (French cour) while
Libra symbolizes the harmonic balance in life that flows
from grace. Together they create graceful action.
Where Aries
asks us to seize the moment through heroic living, Libra
asks us to demonstrate that fierce heat of living in and
through our relationships. Aries defines the AM-ness of existing
as an individual, rushing forth into total self-expression
as a force of being, while Libra defines the relationship
between beings and expresses the field of love and interaction
as well as tension and opposition. Where Aries is the warrior,
pioneer, and leader, Libra is the artist, lover, and diplomat.
The
mystics proclaim that God is love and that eternal being
finds expression through humanity and
creation. The second
Hebrew letter “bait” (Greek beta) means literally “house” and
symbolizes the divine spirit dwelling in form. We discussed
this concept in the last article on Ascension into the Here
and Now. It’s difficult for some to imagine the Western
omnipotent, almighty God having a need for creation, yet
that is the creator’s essence. The primary attribute
of a creator is creativity. I like to think of universal
love as the instrument of cosmic creativity. The gravitational
principle of divine love serves galaxies around the clock.
In
this way, the love of divinity flows into and enlivens creation
and causes life to blaze into being. The beauty
of the archetype of Libra is demonstrated as this love flows
into and between the individual sparks of consciousness that
Aries symbolizes. The Hindu’s call creation Lela, which
means God’s Play. The Te in Tao Te Ching is usually
translated as virtue and power. The Chinese character for
Te actually combines the three radicals (mini-characters)
for motion, vision, and heart symbolizing the ability to
act or move through life guided by heart vision. That’s
the kind of graceful action (wu wei) that emerges from the
Aries Libra polarity. You can see it expressed in the graceful
movements of martial arts, (Mars doing art!).
In
my fantasy adventure novel series I’m crafting
one book for each sign of the zodiac. The first book, Brazenwood,
explores the Aries archetype seen through the lens of Libra.
My main character Arian faces incredible challenges in his
quest requiring him to express great courage, but the source
of that courage comes from love. In the end, it is his heart
that elevates his path of destiny above a random meaningless
fate.
Each one of us is on a quest whether we realize it
or not, to find our unique path in life. Our souls would
rather fail at following their own destined courses than
succeed at living someone else’s life. The unknown
sea of our future often looks ominous and people are goaded
by society to pull into the nearest harbor for a nice, safe
and secure life. I once heard that ships enjoy being docked,
but they were made for sailing. It is this image I tried
to capture in the following poem.
Well of Being
Deep in the well of being burns the hidden desire
that you must discover and surrender to.
It alone will open the voice of your soul.
You must find that fiery star and set your course
across the treacherous inner sea.
The awakening of your true longing will inspire you
to persevere despite the abyss of fear that looms before
you.
Your passion must resonate with eternal being
as you plunge into those mystery depths
so that the resolve generated in your heart is pure.
It is that soul purpose only you can fulfill,
because destiny emerges from action and welcomes initiative.
Then you will make your lasting contribution to humanity,
like Prometheus stealing the sacred fire from the gods
you will rise to the occasion and follow the
only life you know you must live but have forgotten.
Despite
the strain of Western culture on the traditions of Asia
and Africa throughout the Age of Pisces, the unfolding
drama has not been one of total loss. Most of the explorers
of the Renaissance were Europeans. In this sense, the West
has given the East its spirit of adventure, curiosity, and
that Promethean fire that goes against the grain of tradition
to inspire new discoveries.
That same fire is available now
to women as they have been empowered to explore their own
unique brand of courage rarely witnessed in history in such
people as Joan of Arc, Cleopatra, Boudicea, and Queen Elizabeth.
At the same time it has become kosher for men to explore
and awaken their anima to reconnect with the mystery of the
Sophianic feminine.
I
was talking to a 78-year-old Italian immigrant the other
day called Zai who is an Argentine Tango dance
instructor
and he told me the story of his life. He moves and dances
like he’s 45 with his Gemini Sun, Sag Moon, and Leo
Rising. His childhood in Fascist Italy was brutal and his
father was harsh. This led him to escape into books and the
life of the imagination.
After migrating to America in his
teens he eventually married and had three children. In time
his wife was diagnosed with a terminal illness (auto-immune
disease). The doctors said she had less than a year to live.
Her name was Margaret (notice the Mars hiding in her name
inspiring courage). She told the doctors that she was too
busy to die and had to raise her three children. She often
told Zai, “You take what you’re given and you
go with it.” During the next 25 years of her life the
doctors said she would be dead within the year six times
before she finally surrendered and passed into the spirit
world after raising her children. The doctors began calling
her the miracle lady.
Zai
told me that he didn’t discard challenges until
after he discovered the gift they offered. At that critical
first juncture when his wife was supposed to die, he had
to make the heroic choice of a lifetime. His wife’s
illness made it impossible to share passion together. Instead
of leaving her or cheating with other women on the side,
he made up his mind and heart to become an ascetic and devote
himself to her and the family.
He channeled his sexual energy
into creative prowess through various Eastern disciplines
like yoga. During those last 25 years his wife became his
spiritual teacher. Her spirit was unquenchable, as she stood
bold in the face of her slow demise. Through her illness
he mastered the heroic courage to love integrating Aries
and Libra.
As
I talked with Zai at the Irish pub here in Asheville one
night he told me of the physical challenges
he was able
to overcome through the continuing power of his former wife’s
love. At age 69, he climbed a wobbly pole strapped in a harness
for safety and stood on top of a swaying one-foot square
board balanced precariously thirty feet in the air and leapt
onto a trapeze suspended high across a 12 foot divide.
Where
most other men of his men’s group between the ages
of 20 and 50 failed, he succeeded. The younger men were astonished.
He told them that he made the jump because he imagined his
wife sitting on the edge of the trapeze smiling and urging
him to do it. Secretly, he had a pinch of her ashes in his
sock during the test of courage. He often traveled to places
she once enjoyed to deliver a pinch of her ashes. As he told
me this incredible story the following poem spontaneously
came into my mind. To me it symbolizes the essence of the
Aries-Libra axis of life.
Courage
I constantly contemplate transition, death, change,
the end in which I begin in utter transcendence.
Know thyself, and then go beyond it.
“Take what you’re given and go with it,” she said.
With a pinch of her ashes hidden in my shoes
I leapt and attained my aspiration.
I can still see the magic reflected in her cheek bones,
the courage blazing in her fiercely loving eyes
that froze even death for 25 years.
I continue to tango into her smile, her powerful presence,
her love that never falters as it reaches across dimensions
and wells up as tears in my eyes.
Aries is about motivation, self-expression, and adventure.
Wherever this sign is flowing into your chart, that’s
where you are activating your essence, creating vitality,
and, and expressing consciousness. Libra is about the grace
of loving and the art of being loved. Wherever this sign
is flowing into your chart, that’s where you need
to initiate awareness, illuminate ideas, create the thought
forms that nourish social interplay.
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